Dodgers win one, lose three in Rule V draft

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LAS VEGAS -- The Dodgers sat out the major league portion of the Rule V draft Thursday on the closing day of baseball’s winter meetings, neither claiming nor losing a player. But they were active on the minor league side, selecting infielder Anthony Hatch from Toronto while losing Double A infielders Francisco Lizarraga (to Cincinnati) and Shane Justis (Milwaukee) and Double A outfielder Andrew Locke to Houston in the Triple A draft.

Hatch, 25, a 13th-round pick in the 2005 June draft, hit .273 with 13 homers and 55 RBI in 122 games split between Double A and Single A last season.

The 23-year-old Lizarraga, signed six years ago as a free agent, batted .206 in 80 games divided between Single A and Triple A last summer and has continued to struggle in the Mexican League this winter, hitting .147 in 19 games for his hometown team in Mazatlan.

Locke, 25, selected by the Dodgers in the 19th round of the 2005 draft, had a big year at Single A Inland Empire, hitting .311 with 11 homers and 85 RBI, while Justis, a 21st-round pick in 2005, hit .266 in 117 games at Double A Jacksonville.

The Dodgers will receive $12,000 in compensation for each of the players they lost.

-- Kevin Baxter